How does a coach that has been granted a 10-year show-cause penalty from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) open a fully accredited prep academy for students in grades 9-12 and some post grad students? Especially when the majority of the allegations involved with his show-cause penalty were academic related?
The T-N-G Academy opened in May 2016 and pledges to provide a balance of academics with the highest level of basketball skill development. While on this coach’s watch he allowed graduate assistants and other basketball personnel to do online assignments for prospects coming into his program. He also fabricated a document to justify payments to student-athletes and took other actions to thwart an investigation by the NCAA.
His former NCAA school was given a slew penalties as a result of this coach’s actions while the head coach. They have a three year probation period, a two-year postseason ban, a 10-year show cause for this coach, a six-year show-cause for the graduate assistant who completed online assignments for prospects, a seven-year show-cause for the graduate assistant who completed online assignments for prospects and refused to cooperate with the investigation, a two-year show-cause for a prospect’s prep school coach, an eight-year show-cause order for the former associate head coach, a vacation of wins that ineligible players had played in, a reduction of five scholarships over the next three years, a $5,000 fine to the basketball program, a reduction of the number of official visits for future recruits, a prohibition to host any unofficial visits for a period of 10 weeks before the beginning of the fall 2016 semester, a restriction in recruiting communications with prospects for 10 weeks before the beginning of the fall 2016 semester, and the reduction in the basketball off-campus recruiting days during the 2015-16 season by 25.
Even with this list of 14 penalties against his former school and being fired for cause from the school that hired him from his previous school he is still able to open a fully accredited prep academy. The governing body that is responsible for accrediting this prep academy should be denied the ability to fully accredit any educational institution. These penalties are public knowledge and have been fully investigated. For any parent to allow their son or daughter to attend this prep academy shows a true disregard for the academic educational system as we know it. This is an embarrassment to the academic educational system in the United States and the coaching profession.
By Dr. Bret Simmermacher
Dr. Simmermacher is the Chair of Sports Coaching at the United States Sports Academy, and can be reached at bsimmer@ussa.edu